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Sadly, we're not alone in facing disasters
Sadly, we're not alone in facing disasters

Winnipeg Free Press

time4 days ago

  • Climate
  • Winnipeg Free Press

Sadly, we're not alone in facing disasters

Opinion Switzerland is a long way from Manitoba. Switzerland has alpine meadows and glaciers and mountains — Manitoba does not. Manitoba has broad swathes of flatland prairie; Switzerland does not. David Lipnowski / The Canadian Press A helicopter drops water on a wildfire near Lac du Bonnet on May 15. But both jurisdictions are feeling the destructive impact of global climate change, and both are likely to continue to reap that whirlwind. In Manitoba, regularly warmer weather is drying out the boreal forest, making wildland fires both more common and more severe. This month's fires have brought the wildfire-burned lands in Manitoba in 2025 to a staggering 200,000 hectares, almost triple the amount of forestland burned in an entire average year. And this is just May — with fires still burning out of control and some predictions of a hotter and drier than usual summer ahead, it seems reasonable to expect the amount of burned forestland to grow. From fire, to ice. Switzerland has seen its temperature rise, on average, by three degrees Celsius since the 1970s. In the process, glaciers across the European country have shrunk dramatically. Since 2020, Swiss glaciers have lost 40 per cent of their volume: in two summers alone, 2022 and 2023, the glacial loss was 10 per cent. Sometimes, the loss of glaciers seems almost placid: more meltwater flows from the foot of a glacier than it has in decades past, and the toe of the glacier slowly recedes up the long canyons built by the sheer weight and movement of rivers of grinding ice. The effects are visible over years, most commonly seen by comparing year-over-year photographs. But other times, glaciers can undergo rapid change: ice walls holding back glacial lakes collapse, or entire glacial faces can pitch down into valleys beneath them. This past week, while Manitobans were being evacuated from scores of locations and a provincial state of emergency was being declared in an effort to deal with more than 20 forest fires, a glacial collapse virtually eradicated Blatten, a small Swiss town of 300 south of the capital of Bern. Warming temperatures caused permafrost holding mountainside rockfaces together to melt. Millions of tons of rock spilled onto the surface of the Birch Glacier, and the combination of all that weight and warm weather Monday caused a second collapse, this time with the entire face of the glacier plowing down a mountainside and through the village. (Scientists had already noticed significant cracking occurring quickly on the glacier, and Blatten had been evacuated on an emergency basis on May 19.) In total, snow and rock debris several metres deep now covers more than a mile of valley. 'Nature is stronger than human beings and mountain people know this well,' Swiss Environment Minister Albert Rösti said. 'But what happened today is absolutely extraordinary. It was the worst we could've imagined.' In Manitoba, we also know the strength of nature, from fires to floods to extreme temperatures on both sides of freezing. And the current forest fires are close to the worst the province has ever experienced. Weekday Mornings A quick glance at the news for the upcoming day. Will disasters like Blatten happen again? Mathieu Morlighem, a glaciologist at Dartmouth College, speaking to ABC News, said 'I think we can expect more events like this in the future.' Sadly, that holds just as true for forest fires in Manitoba as it does for glaciers in Switzerland. The Swiss are almost half a world apart from us geographically, but all too close when it comes to facing hazards from a changing climate. Sadly, we're all in this together.

Manitoba to implement new restrictions as wildfires continue to burn out of control
Manitoba to implement new restrictions as wildfires continue to burn out of control

CTV News

time6 days ago

  • Climate
  • CTV News

Manitoba to implement new restrictions as wildfires continue to burn out of control

Smoke from wildfires in northern Manitoba has prompted three First Nations to send hundreds of vulnerable residents south. A wildfire burns in northern Manitoba as seen from a helicopter surveying the situation, on Tuesday, May 14, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/David Lipnowski The Manitoba Wildfire Service is increasing fire and travel restrictions throughout the province in an effort to combat the current wildfire situation. The province said in it's latest fire bulletin Thursday that 'human activity continues to significantly contribute to Manitoba's current wildfire situation.' With that, the service will be implementing Level 3 restrictions for all 22 burn areas in the province starting at 8 a.m. on Friday. The newest restrictions would mean all hiking trails and water routes are closed, all burn permits are cancelled and no other permits will be issued, camping is restricted to developed campgrounds, boats are only allowed at developed shorelines, and lodge access is only allowed at main lodges. The local conservation officers also has discretion for travel permits for industrial operations on non-designated or unrecognized roads, the province said. The Level 3 restrictions will be in place until further notice. A full list of the province's burn areas can be found online. Along with the new restrictions the province shared the state of emergency will be in effect until June 26. The province also announced Bakers Narrows Provincial Park campground is now closed and all campers need to leave the campground by 8 p.m. There continues to be 22 wildfires burning in Manitoba and there have been 103 fires in 2025.

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